Avatar: Call of the Swamp
by Heart-of-Moons
Summary: Deep in the Foggy Swamp, something is crying out. The Avatar, catching wind of strange occurrences happening there, makes it his priority to find out what it is. The ancient roots of the Banyan-Grove tree are reaching out, desperately calling. The swamp is dying at the heart, but can Aang save it? Or will he need rescuing, himself?
1. Chapter 1: Return to the Swamp

Avatar: Call of the Swamp

Chapter 1: Return to the Swamp

_"See, this whole swamp is actually one tree spread out over miles. Branches spread and sink and take root and then spread some more. One big, living organism. Just like the entire world." -Huu_

"Hey Aang," Katara approached me as I was looking down at the progress of the Southern Air Temple's reconstruction with satisfaction. Thanks to Zuko, we were able to rebuild my home.

"Yeah?" I couldn't keep the smile off of my face. I was so excited to see this place look like it used to!

"I want to show you something," she said as she took my hand and led me back into the ancient sanctuary. All of the statues of my past lives stared down at us with empty eyes as we passed each of them by. Katara was so eager as she led me towards the back, into the darkest corner of the structure.

When we stopped, Katara motioned to the spot in front of us. "Look," she spoke with confusion, but a bit of wonder, "this spot doesn't have a statue."

"What?" I looked on each side of the empty place. There were avatars on each side, but this one was missing. I knelt down and put my hand on the carved stone platform, feeling its cold, flat surface. A feeling of emptiness nagged at the back of my mind, but my water-bending partner interrupted my thoughts.

"Do you think the statue was broken?" She asked the question, but almost doubted that possibility herself.

"No..." I ran my hand across the smooth stone, "there was never one here." But why?

"They couldn't have forgotten one of the avatars, could they?"

I shook my head, "maybe not forgotten. They might not have been found." It was a strange thought to think that there was a missing avatar that was never recorded in history. Someone out there had to know or have some kind of record. It had to be a mistake. I couldn't help but feel that something was wrong with this though.

"Well, let's see," she looked back to the surrounding statues and tracked each nation in her mind. "They would have been from the Water Tribe," she inferred.

"The Southern Water Tribe is difficult to get to, so maybe they didn't check it...?" I gave a sheepish smile after I came to that weak conclusion. Katara wasn't happy with that idea though.

"You can't tell me that there were never any other Southern Water Tribe avatars," she shot down that idea easily with a bit of fire behind it.

"Well, I don't know who all of my past lives are!" I defended myself, "how am I supposed to know?"

Katara didn't hear me as she thought of her own version. "Maybe they were like you and didn't want to be the Avatar, so they hid from everyone and were never found?" It was a possibility, but it didn't feel quite right.

"I don't think that'd be the case..." I thought for a while, wondering how this could even be possible. They always knew who the Avatar was, so what was the exception here?

"Can't you contact the Spirit World? One of your other past lives should know," Katara was set on figuring this out. I was curious myself about it and couldn't help but wonder if Roku could tell me anything.

"I guess I can try," I stretched before sitting on the pedestal and taking my meditation position. I closed my mind off from all outside interferences, but still became aware of all that was around me. The sanctuary was silent and the wind was blowing outside, occasionally blowing stray leaves inside.

The gap between this world and the Spirit World came together once again for me as I made contact with Roku, my past life. I smiled up at him.

"Hello Aang," Roku greeted me.

"Roku," I thought of how to word my question before speaking. "Was there ever an avatar that was never found?"

"It was a rare occurrence for an avatar to never make themselves known somewhere in the world," the Fire Nation avatar replied, pausing to think. "It's been centuries since one was not officially recorded."

"Why? Who were they?" The questions flew out of my mouth before I knew what they were.

"You will find the answers to your questions within yourself." His answers always confused me so much!

"What do you mean?" I always seemed to ask him.

"All of the avatars are connected, just as the world is. It is up to you to follow the path that has been revealed to you." Well, that didn't help much...

"What path?" I curiously asked.

Roku gave a short smile down at me, "it has once been revealed, but has not yet been followed." With that, my connection with Roku and the Spirit World was ended and I was back to the real world with Katara looking at me hopefully.

"Well?" She bit her lip, excited to know who the Water Tribe avatar was.

"He said something about following a path that has been revealed to me once..." I rubbed the back of my head.

"What does that mean?" Her smile dropped.

"I don't know... Maybe-"

"About time we found you love-birds." We both turned to see Toph and Sokka walking towards us.

"Look at this," Katara pointed at the pedestal, "there's an avatar missing here."

"So?" Sokka skeptically raised an eyebrow with his hands on his hips, "just a simple mistake someone made. We have more important things to worry about, come on." He stalked off as if on important business, expecting us to follow.

"What's wrong?" Katara asked a little worried.

"Don't ask me," Toph shrugged as she walked on, "there's a messenger waiting for Aang."

"Then let's go!" I jumped back to my feet and exited the sanctuary with them. The missing statue mystery would have to wait if it was something important.

We met up with Sokka and the Earth Kingdom messenger. The tall boy acted a little nervous and jumped when he caught sight of me.

"Oh!" He bowed quickly in greeting, "Avatar Aang. I have a message from a man that said he knew you! He said he was from the Foggy Swamp Tribe!"

"Huu?" Sokka guessed out loud, a bit surprised to hear from that part of the world rather than somewhere else.

The anxious messenger nodded eagerly, "that's the one! He said he needed the Avatar to come as soon as he could!"

"Why?" I asked, confused myself.

"Important! He said extremely important!" We watched the boy speak frantically, wishing he would give more specific information.

"Anything else?" Our Water Tribe warrior crossed his arms, a little annoyed with the lack of information.

The messenger thought a quick moment, "did I already say important?" Sokka just slapped his forehead irritated. Toph sighed, bored with the conversation.

"Well," I came to my decision, "I guess if it's that important, then I'll go check it out."

"Yes! Important!" He nodded eagerly. I bowed in appreciation.

"Thank you." He bowed again and fled the area.

"Well that was helpful," Sokka sarcastically remarked, his blue eyes looking to the clear sky.

"What do you think is so important?" Katara asked.

"I don't know," I looked into the distance in thought, "but it might be something big if he wants my help." I tried to figure out what could possibly be wrong out there. The swamp was huge and the tribe was pretty secluded out there. I couldn't see anyone causing problems for them way out there, but I guessed it couldn't be completely out of the question...

"I'll go with you," Katara's ocean blue eyes gazed at me with the idea of another short adventure alongside me.

"You should stay here and keep an eye on the reconstruction," I told her, hoping she wouldn't be too upset about that suggestion. "It probably won't take long, whatever it is."

My reassuring statement didn't make her any happier about my decision, but she couldn't argue with me. "Alright," she nodded, "just be careful." She hugged me close and I returned it.

"Aren't I always?"

"No." That one word escaped more than one mouth in the proximity, making me laugh a little nervously.

"Please Aang?" She stared down at me with worry, the fear of losing me clear in her expression.

"Don't worry," I kissed her lightly. I could hear Sokka's grumble of complaint over where he stood, brooding like the protective brother he was. Katara gave me a small smile, ignoring her older brother.

"I'll help you pack," she said before we started walking.

* * *

"If you're not back in three days, I'll come looking for you," Katara continued to talk about the 'if's after she had finished packing more than enough supplies in Appa's saddle.

"_We'll_ come looking for you," Sokka cut in, not about to let his sister go anywhere alone. I was glad about that though. Even though Katara was strong, and I knew she would do all right... I still couldn't help but worry about her.

"Thanks," I smiled gratefully, "but don't worry. It won't take me long. I'll be back before you know it!" Katara hugged me again, her beautiful dark hair spreading out across my neck and shoulder. I didn't expect to be gone very long, but I would still miss her while I was off. "Take care of Momo for me," I said before hopping up onto Appa. Momo looked a little disappointed, but sat on Katara's shoulder with his tail wrapped around her neck lightly.

"Bye! Be careful!" Katara called as Appa took off into the air. She waved with her smile never leaving her face and I waved back until I could no longer see her through the thick, low clouds that hid the temple from view.

As Appa and I journeyed across the dark ocean, I continued to think of how strange it was for there to be an avatar that went missing. I decided that I would look more into it when I knew everything was calm in the world. My first priority was maintaining peace within the four nations, but if someone actually was bothering the Foggy Swamp Tribe, then it needed to be resolved quickly.

It took a few hours of constant flying until I could see the dense swamp coming into view. I had Appa go down lower so that I could see the swamp closer as we made our way towards the tribe. Something felt different. It wasn't the same as the last time I had been here. I told my flying friend to take us down into the tribe settlement and he reluctantly landed in the dark swamp, damaging some trees on the way down.

The entire tribe stopped what it was doing and stared at us. I was used to people being happy to see me, but this time it was as if their spirit was gone. The voids in each of their eyes watched me blankly and I finally noticed the far side of the settlement.

All in a row lay tribe members of different ages, each appearing to be sick or injured. I finally spotted the one that called me there. His green eyes were sad, but he still offered a smile and wave as he approached me. I slid down off of Appa and couldn't help the sympathy I felt for these people. They called for me because there was no one else to call...

"It's been a while, Avatar." Huu hadn't seem to age very much since I had last seen him. He was still the kind elder man I had met a few years ago when the swamp had dragged my friends and I in.

"What happened here?" I asked him, amazed at the number of people down.

His false smile faded and he motioned me to follow him over to the ill and injured. "Our kin here are very ill, and some of them even injured..." He paused to collect his thoughts as I helplessly watched these poor people struggle against their fevers.

"I can bring back Katara," I offered, "she's an amazing healer."

Huu shook his head, "our own healers could do nothing. We believe it is more than a simple illness. It is something beyond that. Something spiritual."

"Wait," I interrupted him, "you think a spirit is causing this?"

"That could be a possibility," he replied as he knelt down by a small child. The boy's face was contorted in visible pain, trembling as he laid. Huu uncovered the child's arm that had been wrapped carefully with large leaves to reveal a long, deep cut. The blood was dried black, and all around it the skin was darkening. What could have done that...? Huu answered my awestruck expression, "this child was attacked by something... We don't know what it was, the child's descriptions were hard to understand." He covered the wound back up and stood upright. "All of these people said things about seeing hallucinations, which is normal here..." There was a short pause, his expression becoming more serious before he spoke again, "but never have we heard of something attacking anyone."

"Do you have any idea why something would hurt your people?" I hoped to get some kind of idea where to start my search.

He nodded, "I will show you where I think it originates from."

I found myself standing at the base of the large banyan-grove tree. Looking down at the massive roots, I saw how black they were starting to become. The once thick fig tree that had its canopy spread far and wide was now thinning out. The once dark green color of its top was now drained of that color, becoming brittle and brown. I put my hand on its trunk, the peeling bark scraping my soft skin.

"What happened...?" I could only murmur, mostly to myself at this scene.

"The banyan-grove tree is dying," Huu said with a bit of agony in his green eyes, "and so is the rest of the swamp."

"What do you mean?" I looked to him, wondering how the entire swamp could die. That seemed hard to believe...

"You remember what I told you here?" He held a small curve on his lips. I nodded.

"Everything is connected," I could never forget the lesson this swamp taught me. He seemed happy that I remembered.

"Yes," his own hand touched the trunk of the tree. He gently rubbed it, feeling bad that he could do nothing for it. "This tree is the heart of the swamp, it being the home and food source of many bugs and animals. The bugs and animals are fewer since it has started to die, making our lives harder. Some of our tribe fears going out to hunt now, since so many have suffered from attacks. If this isn't resolved, the swamp will be no more. Along with its inhabitants."


	2. Chapter 2: Connected

Avatar: Call of the Swamp

Chapter 2: Connected

_"In the swamp, we see visions of people we've lost, people we've loved, folks we think are gone. But the swamp tells us they're not. We're still connected to them. Time is an illusion and so is death." -Huu_

Aang's Point of View

I sat at the base of the banyan-grove tree, watching the darkening roots starting to pull out of the earth. The tree was slowly dying, and the Swamp Tribe couldn't figure out why. They had called for me, the bridge between the real world and the Spirit World. Huu had left me alone to return to his tribe, saying that they had wanted more guidance and reassurance than ever. He was counting on me to resolve this though. I hoped I could.

The swamp was dead silent. It was always quiet, but not so empty. The life was being sucked out of it little by little as the tree slowly withered away. It was heart-breaking to witness it. To see its inhabitants struggle in fear. If it couldn't be saved, I would have to get all of them out of here. But would these people be willing to leave their home? Their heritage would disappear as time went by, and the Foggy Swamp Tribe would be gone. Forever. No... I had to preserve it. Preserve life. Preserve balance.

I stared out in front of me, focusing on my surroundings. My eyelids threatened to close from tiredness. I opened my eyes wider when I thought I saw something. Something moved. Then it was gone. _It must have been another illusion_, I thought to myself. Those weren't uncommon here. I heard something. A small sound, maybe a voice... Was someone here? I glanced around me, my eye catching a figure.

"Hello?" I stood up, on guard. Something was here. I knew it.

In the distance, in the thinning trees, I spotted green. If the forest hadn't been dying, it would have blended in, but it shown through the browns of different shades clearly. I lightly treaded closer, knowing it might just be another hallucination. When I was nearer, I could see straight dark hair and pale skin. I spoke up again.

"Hello...?" Suddenly she was gone. It reminded me of when I saw a vision of Toph, except this girl wasn't giggling. She was running around, toying with me. This wasn't playful and childish though. It was ominous and kind of freaky. Not seeing her anywhere, I turned to return to the trunk of the tree. Green eyes stared into mine and I reeled back, letting out a startled yell.

She stood before me, her light green eyes empty of light in the darkness of the swamp. Her long dark hair was spread about her neck and shoulders in tangles. Her small body was wrapped with strips of green all the way down to her ankles, a tattered skirt hanging down to her knees. Her showing skin was so pale, anyone would call her a ghost in the moonlight. A moment of eerie silence was between us until I heard rustling. I was hesitant to stray my gaze from her eyes, feeling that she might attack me.

Crack! I remained frozen, but I could feel something slithering around my ankles. Finally daring to take my eyes away from this girl, the thick roots slowly slinking up were what caught my attention. Within a moment, the blackened roots shot towards me, gripping at my arms and legs, pulling me closer. The girl was gone and I was pulled into the trunk of the tree, the back of my head bashing into its hard bark. Black spots took over my vision as I sat dazed.

When my vision cleared, I shook my head, moaning at the headache coming on. I came to the realization that I was pinned to the banyan-grove tree by its roots, unable to move. Suddenly she was there again, staring at me with burning anger.

"Who are you?" I put on a brave face, "why are you attacking the tribe?" I couldn't show her that I was nervous, but she could probably sense my anxiety. Her head lowered, her dark hair hiding her white face from me. She trembled a little.

"You want to know... Who I am...?" Her voice was small and weak, not the vengeful one I had expected. "You should know... Aang..." When she looked back up, what I saw drained the color from my own face. From her eyes came streaks of red that trailed down her face and neck. Blood. Deep. Red. Blood.

There was bright light. We were traveling through time. Just like Roku had with me when he showed me him and Fire Lord Sozin back before the war. This girl was showing me something. She was connected to this swamp and I felt like, possibly, that she was connected to me.

"I was a normal girl... None of this was supposed to happen... I was a disgrace to humanity. And so are those who dwell in this swamp."

* * *

_Centuries before..._

Standing on the skiff, feeling the water flow and shift under my feet, I waited. The insects chirped and a catigator swiftly swum under the boat. The warm water below me flowed slowly, but I could still feel everything that swam through it. Such peacefulness... Never lasted long.

_Whoosh! _ The water whipped around me in a thin line, making me lean forward and twist my arms back, propelling the skiff forward at an amazing speed. I kept a steady stance as I jabbed my arms forward and back to keep the canoe going through the thick, green water. I dodged the obstacles in my path as they came, avoiding the vines that tried pulling me into the swamp.

I continued on through the maze of trees. I let down my stance, allowing my skiff to come to a stop. The water calmed within moments. I lost them, I thought with a slight smile. I turned to move my boat to higher ground, only for my face to be attacked by a stream of water. I fell backwards into the swamp, holding my breath. The soft algae tickled my arms and legs, and I pushed myself back up to the surface.

When I came back up to the surface, I gasped in a deep breath. From the skiff I heard giggling, and I turned to see my pursuer lounging in it contentedly. Her dark skin blended in with the muddy water, and her teal eyes glittered in the filtered light between the trees. Her slender form laid lazily on the bottom of the canoe.

"Nice elbow leech," she rolled onto her stomach in the boat, putting her hand into the water, her giggling sounding almost as high-pitched as a screeching bird. I looked down at my arm to see the leech sucking on my left elbow. My right hand gently squeezed it and pulled it off, allowing it to slither back into the depths of the swamp.

"Will you two quit messing around out here?" From the shore called an older teenage boy. He was thin, but strong. His pale skin was even paler than my own, his hair just as dark as mine. His tangles of brown hair laid on his head limply, coming down to hide his oval-shaped, dark brown eyes.

"Aw Tero, you're no fun!" The girl in my skiff stuck her tongue out at him, pushing back her thick waves of hair.

"Kuai, you always get us into trouble. Mainly me." Tero pointed at his bare chest.

"Something wrong, Tero?" I lifted myself up into the boat with Kuai, wringing out my straight hair and watching him with my green eyes. He seemed hesitant to say something, but would still bluntly state it aloud.

"Your mother wanted to see you, Baye," my friend told me with a hard expression.

"Why?" Kuai quickly asked, sitting up so fast that the skiff rocked back and forth in the stagnant water. I steadied the boat after standing upright. I wondered the same thing. What could have been so important?

"I don't know."

"Well, we should head back then," I stretched my arms, preparing myself for more waterbending through the swamp.

"Yay!" Kuai jumped up, rocking the skiff even more. "Come on, Tero!"

Our older friend wasn't very interested in riding with us though. "I think I'll pass," Tero said as he crossed his scratched-up arms.

"Tero's afraid of falling off!" Kuai teased with a cheeky smirk.

Tero's face blushed a bit red from anger, "am not!"

My waterbender friend giggled, "prove it!"

"Fine." He straightened his back and pulled up his arms, pushing the earth beneath him up. He launched himself into the air, landing in our small canoe, and just about tipping it over. I kept my stance to steady it, keeping my calm composure.

"Whoo!" Kuai raised her arms excitedly. "Let's go!" Both of us moved our arms together, shooting our skiff through the dark water. Our earthbending friend fell back into the bottom of the canoe from the force, quickly crossing his arms to hide the surprise.

The two of us girls waterbended in sync, both of us moving quickly and precisely. It wasn't easy for two people to control a skiff at the same time without practice. Both benders had to work together evenly at the same time, or the boat could break if enough force was put into it. If two people could control the skiff seamlessly though, it could move twice as fast and powerfully. It was something that Kuai and I had perfected together, over a lot of practice. It took maybe months to finally do it, since our personalities were much different from each other.

Kuai was always hyper and excited. She was always a flash in the trees, constantly moving all the time. She always laughed into the deep swamp loudly, not afraid of the disturbance to nature it might bring. Her name suited her perfectly, meaning quick or fast. That was who she was.

I was almost the complete opposite of her. I was much quieter, and could keep calm most of the time. Rather than running through the swamp playing, I preferred to sit and listen to my surroundings. I respected nature and my connection to this earth, spending most of my time in its quiet sereneness. Kuai found simply sitting in the swamp boring, but respected what was important to me.

The skiff came to a halt right before it could collide with an impatient Len, who had his arms folded over his chest and watched the three of us with a hard stare from behind his round glasses. Kuai leapt off of the boat, feeling no immediate threat at the moment.

"Hi Len!" He didn't seem amused at her antics, however, and Kuai put her waving hand down. Tero stepped off of the skiff and nervously looked up to his father.

"Sorry Father..." Tero apologized, but said no more when Len spoke to him with his serious tone.

"Tero, I told you this is a serious matter. There is to be no fooling around at a time like this." Len adjusted his gold-rimmed glasses and put his hands on his belt. He was wearing his 'traveling attire' as Tero called it, rather than normal things we wore here. He had just returned from one of his trips, but I never knew exactly where he had went. He always brought back things like cloths and medicines though. He had been taking those trips more frequently recently, but I knew better than to ask why. "Come along, Baye." His gloved hand was held out to me and I took it. He helped me out of the canoe and was soon taking me quickly across the settlement.

I looked behind me to glance at my friends. Tero held a worried look in his brown eyes as he watched us go. He took his glance from me and went to Kuai, who was standing there confused. I saw Tero's lips move, but couldn't read what they said. From Kuai's sad expression, it couldn't have been good. I was forced to look back in front of me when I was led into my mother and I's hut.

Inside of our home was dim, a small fire crackling at its center. Kuai's mother was hovering over the one on the bed of soft woven leaves. Tero's mother had her pale fingers over her mouth as she trembled, tears coming from her moss-colored eyes. Fear came over me as I realized what was happening, but I didn't want to believe it.

"How is she?" Len asked his wife. He grasped her hand and took it from her small face. Su closed her eyes and shook her head, making me feel sick to my stomach.

A deep sigh came from Kuai's mother as she sat up straight and turned to us. Her features were worn and she was obviously tired and weary from her constant efforts. Her blue eyes were regretful and apologetic.

"It's no good... I'm sorry..." Her weak voice trailed off and her thin hands shook before gripping her skirt. I looked past her to the one on the bed.

Her tangled dark hair lay spread about her head on her. Her beautiful green eyes remained closed as her ragged breathing continued on. She looked so frail and weak... I couldn't believe what I was seeing... My bare feet treaded across the soft earth beneath them. My knees trembled until they gave out from under me, bringing me down to the ground next to her. I helplessly watched her weak body shake relentlessly, as my shaking hand reached for hers.

"That's it," Len spoke up loudly, making the two women in the hut look at him. "I'm going to search for a healer."

"Len!" Su grabbed his arm to stop him from leaving, but clutched him closer when a strong breeze found its way into the room.

I felt the wind twirl around me, taking my hair up into the air and making my skirt flap around my legs. I stood up in wonder as all around me leaves and flowers flew. The three adults watched in amazement as the wind carried these things with me in the center. Suddenly a feeling of familiarity came over me, and I watched in awe. Through all of the commotion, the dying fire blazed to life, its flames nearly touching the roof. The cinders that came off of it were taken by the mysterious wind and followed the same path as the colored petals around me.

Within moments, inside of the hut calmed and the leaves and flowers fluttered to the ground around me. My hair rested back down on my back and shoulders, and I was left to stare in astonishment. What had just happened...?

Su's hand fell from her husband's grip and a small finger came up to point at me. "You..." Her voice was a mere whisper, but her eyes said that she understood.

My attention was pulled away from her as I saw my mother's eyes open. I was instantly at her side again and I took her hand.

"Mom..." I managed to get out that one word as my hand held hers, desperate to keep her with me.

A weak smile formed on her lips. "Baye... Sweetheart..." Her green eyes looked into mine, her happiness to see me showing clearly as it always did. I listened intently, forgetting about those around us. "Go..."

"Go?" I didn't understand that at all. "Go where? I'm not leaving you." I couldn't leave her like that. I just couldn't.

"Don't worry," she whispered softly, "I'll be fine... I'm strong." Her hand weakly motioned me closer and I brought my head towards hers, receiving a kiss on my forehead. One of her hands held mine gently, while the other reached inside of her covers. I watched her pull out dark, wooden beads and she brought them up. She opened up my hand and placed the bracelet there, closing my fingers around it as her way to say 'keep it'. I bowed my head in a low nod, kissing her hand softly.

I stood up and turned, gazing at the ground as I exited the hut. When I was back outside, most of the tribe was going about their normal lives. The women sewed leaves and bark together in a semi-circle, chatting in whispers and giggles. The younger children laughed and played, chasing each other around the huts. The men carried branches and twigs, working on building a new larger hut for Len's family, as he was our chief.

I looked down at the beads in my hand. My fingers touched the symbols and words on their wooden surfaces. I squinted my eyes to read the inscription. '_Love lives even through death.'_ I wondered to myself what that could mean, and why my mother had it, but I decided to not question it and clasp it around my wrist.

"Baye," Su called for me as she left my hut and she hurried over to me. When she made it over, she pulled me into a strong hug. "I'm proud of you," she told me with a smile on her face.

"Why?" I asked her, looking down at the ground. She pulled my face back up to look at her, her expression excited for what looked like the first time in years. It was as if a fire was rekindled inside of her.

"You're going to make everyone proud, Baye. It's your destiny." Tero's mother had always spoke of destinies and everyone's place in the world. She was who taught me about the world around me, and it made me feel like we could see things that others could not. That little thing between us always made her happy, and she loved to treat me as her own.

"Aunt Su," was what I had called her. She hushed me with a whisper.

"You're special, dear. You're the only one that can save your mother," she told me. "Your place in this world has only begun to be realized. Follow the path that has been revealed, and bring honor to all of us." I smiled and hugged her back.

"But where?" I asked her. "I don't know how..."

Her smile widened, "beyond this swamp. You will start your journey to the North Pole, home of the greatest healer in the world."

Confusing didn't begin to describe all of this. I was leaving my home to find the greatest healer in the world... I knew that I was being counted on to save my mother, but I had never known there was something other than swamp in the world.

"Where is that?" I asked again.

Su pointed in a direction, where I looked but didn't see anything. "Far north of here. Through the Earth Kingdom and across the ocean." She went on to tell me about the North Pole, how it had been covered in snow and ice and how cold it was. She had said with amazement that it had been beautiful, though. Hearing of this place made me a little anxious to see it, and I knew Kuai would love to see such a place.

Kuai... How would I tell my friends that I was leaving?


End file.
